Shortcut to Happiness

Jabez Stone is a desperate, down-on-his-luck writer who hits rock bottom when his close friend, Julius Jensen, finds success. In his attempts to get his work published, he meets a beautiful stranger who offers him a chance at fame and fortune in exchange for his soul. Stone, having lost faith in himself, agrees to the offer. After accepting the deal, Jabez is quickly lavished with all he had ever dreamed of: a book deal, money, women, notoriety, Stone now has it all. However, despite the success, he is losing the friendship, respect and trust of those around him. Coming to the realization that he did not quite get everything that he bargained for, Stone begs the devil to release him from their deal. When the devil scoffs, he turns to famed orator Daniel Webster. The two conclude that they should take the battle to court with Webster defending Stone in an otherworldly trial against the devil in the ultimate battle of wits in a fight over the fate of Stone's soul. ==Cast==

In addition, Gay Talese, George Plimpton and Carrot Top make cameo appearances as themselves. ==Production history==

Shot in early 2001 in New York City, the film was plagued with financial difficulties. A remake of “The Devil and Daniel Webster," the film was meant to be Alec Baldwin's directorial debut. But due to ongoing issues with backers, financing collapsed and the F.B.I. became involved, which led to Shortcut to Happiness never being properly completed. Baldwin eventually removed his name as director and called for a boycott of the film leading up to its 2001 premiere, but was still credited as one of 17 producers. After removing his name from the director credit, ==Rating==

This film is rated PG-13 by the MPAA for language and sexual content. ==Reception==

Box office Shortcut to Happiness was a box-office bomb, grossing $686,846 at the box office, against a budget of $30 million. Critical response Shortcut to Happiness received negative reviews from critics upon release. The film was criticized for its poor pacing, directing, and acting performances. Variety wrote that Baldwin, "like so many thesp-helmers, lacks an instinctive sense of how to place and move the camera." ==References==